Escape! Book One: Out of the Frying Pan
by FreehanderBaird10716
Summary: Trying to escape the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun, Zuko runs into Azula on accident and is gravely injured. Luckily, as Aang, Sokka, and Toph are retreating from the failed mission to take out the Firelord, they over hear the commotion and save him. Not everybody is happy to have Zuko with them now, but they say to keep your friends close and *former* enemies closer... R R!
1. The Burning Firebender

**A/N:**

 **DISCLAIMER: (Because you ALWAYS have to make sure to respect Bryke and Nick.) I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.  
**

 **So HELLO! I'm so excited to be posting so soon after getting an account! This story is PARTIALLY pre-writ, so updates SHOULD be regular. After I catch up to my pre-writ chapters, I cannot make any promises to being timely and updating regularly, since there's always the opportunity to better my knowledge and such. But I WILL NOT GIVE UP on it. Nope. If worst comes to worst, I will put it up for adoption or write a very long apology letter, but I like to finish things, so I doubt that will happen.**

 **I'm happy to have already received such a warm welcome from ManofManyHats, so a special shout-out to you! I love communicating and 'networking' with other creative individuals in the fandom realm, and I'm looking forward to many great stories and the chance to finally publish and get feedback.**

 **I'm happy to get started on the "torture Zuko" game, and check out my profile to get the full reason why. Please leave comments/feedback, since I'm here to grow.**

 **This will be a 'two part-er', since another idea/prompt of mine fit in with this one.**

 **Warning: mild language, though I won't have anyone swear too much, and attempts at hitting the reader right in the feels.**

 **Enjoy!**

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Chapter One - The Burning Firebender

"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The screams of a poor someone in agony echoed throughout the secret passageways underneath the Fire Nation capital city. Aang, Sokka, and Toph, retreating, stopped in their tracks and swirled around at the sudden noise, adrenaline still pulsing through them at a breakneck pace.

"Who was that?" Sokka demanded.

"I don't know," Aang replied.

"That wasn't Azula, was it?" Toph asked.

"No. That was too masculine sounding. But it's coming in the direction she went…" trailed Sokka, slowly creeping forward with his sword at the ready.

"Shouldn't we be getting _out_ of here?" Toph asked, grabbing him before he could continue any further.

"What if it's one of our own?"

"Sokka, we're the only ones from the invasion down here," Aang said. "We need to go before we…"

Whoever was injured on the other side of their tunnel groaned loudly, his echoes eerily washing over Aang, Sokka, and Toph.

"Toph, who is it?" Sokka asked urgently.

"Azula and… I don't know. I've never felt him before."

"Great. So we for sure don't need to go check it out. Let's get out of here, _now_ ," protested Aang, backing towards their exit.

"No. I, I need to go check it out," said Sokka, shrugging off Toph and sprinting forward. "I've got a gut feeling…"

"Sokka! You're mad! We can't face Azula!" Toph exclaimed, catching up to him, Aang grumpily following close behind.

"No, but we sure can lose her, Toph. I don't recall firebenders getting through a nice, sturdy earth wall very well before."

"With some lightning, yeah!" Aang called.

"Then Toph can bury her ass or something."

They slowed down as they got closer to the source of the noise and could clearly hear two pairs of feet scuffling along in the adjacent tunnel, punctuated by heavy panting and pathetic moaning.

"Come _on_ , ZuZu. You're _fine_."

Toph pulled Sokka and Aang back into the shadows as Azula dragged her brother, hunched over, clutching his side, and handcuffed, by.

"Oh. It's just _him_ ," Sokka muttered, glaring at the pair. "Sorry I wasted our time." He began to leave finally, not giving a second thought to the siblings in front of him. Toph gladly followed him, but Aang, this time, didn't move. Toph sighed.

"Let's go, Twinkle Toes!" Toph whispered feverishly, turning to grab him back. "They aren't any of our business."

"But why would Azula attack Zuko?" He whispered to her.

"How do you know that?"

"Well look! Or feel, or whatever. He's hurt badly. You can sense that, right?" Toph nodded. "She had to have run into him as she was leaving us."

"Why do you care all of a sudden?"

"Why don't you?" Toph grumbled, trying to pull Aang away.

"No!" Aang hissed. He shouldered her off him and launched himself into the tunnel right behind Azula and Zuko, splitting them apart with a well-placed air blast before they could realize that they had company. Toph quickly boxed in Azula before she could turn on them, since Aang was so sure about confrontation now, and Zuko fell, crumpling to the ground against the opposite wall with a yelp and pained groan.

Sokka came back yelling at them, furious and confused.

"Are you nuts?! What do you think you're doing?!" Aang ignored Sokka, and turned to Zuko instead. He was clutching his left side, refusing to expose whatever injury it held. He was sweating buckets, and his skin was warm to the touch. Faint wisps of smoke curled their way between his shackled hands as he breathed heavily, his brow deeply furrowed in tantalizing pain.

"Did Azula attack you yes or no?" Aang asked him. Zuko refused to meet the Avatar's eyes, overcome with a new wave of aches running through him. Sokka unsheathed his sword, walked over, and proceeded to hold Zuko at swordpoint, forcing him to turn and look up at the three of them.

His eyes were unfocused, darting all about, and glistened with unshed tears. Azula pounded on her prison walls, unable to even blast her way out.

"No!" She yelled. Zuko seemed to re-focus at the sound of his sister's voice.

"Yes…" He seethed, glaring in her direction.

"Traitor!" Azula yelled, still trying to burst through without her lightning.

"Why did she attack you? I thought you two were in league together?" Sokka asked, glaring at his old enemy.

"Not anymore. I want out of here, and, and…" He cringed as his charred side sent his entire body shaking. He panted and bit his lower lip hard, unable to double over and cradle it. Aang bent down next to him, and reached for his injury.

"Can I see?" He asked.

"Careful Aang!" Sokka exclaimed, pressing his sword blade against Zuko's throat, daring him to move or attack. Hands shaking, Zuko pulled them away, careful not to trigger the Water Tribe warrior, and esposed the severe burn given to him by Azula. Aang hissed, grimacing at the sight of the plate-sized red and bubbly burn just above Zuko's left hip. There was a clear indention where his outer layers of skin had been melted away and had left an angry, deep shade of burnt tissue red in its place, bumpy with peeling skin and blisters. At its epicenter, it looked fairly deep.

"I know someone who could heal that," he said, getting up. He extended his hand to Zuko.

"Aang, no!" Sokka exclaimed, not drawing his sword away. "She won't, you know that!"

Zuko knew who they were talking about immediately, and felt even sicker than he already was. The waterbender, Katara, would not be at all happy to see him. But, he had to get help, even if it was from her. If that burn didn't get medical attention, then it could heal wrong, get infected, stay problematic for a long, long time…

"Please," he choked out, trying to make himself form a coherent sentence. "I'm sorry, I'm, I'm sorry…" He tried to plead, not bothering to hide emotion if it would show his sincerity, "...for everything." His face was damp with traitorous tears mixed with perspiration, and he was embarrassed beyond belief. He continued to tremble uncontrollably, his heart racing and vision slightly swimming. He wanted to curl up into a ball and bawl. Sokka turned to Toph, nudging her gently. She nodded.

"Pathetic!" Azula yelled from behind them. "Groveling to a bunch of kids! Slaughter them now, and maybe Father will forgive you!"

"Shut up, psycho!" Sokka snapped at her. He turned to Aang and Toph, absolutely _fuming_.

"I need to speak to both of you in private _please_ ," He hissed. Sokka turned to Zuko before he drew his sword away.

"Don't you go anywhere."

"Do you think I can?" Zuko moaned, glaring at the unfocused mass of Sokka. Sokka replaced his sword in a flash against Zuko's neck, pressing a bit harder this time. Zuko instinctively stiffened up.

"Don't test me. You're in no position to be cocky here."

"Sorry," Zuko murmured shamefully, right before another violent shaking fit overtook him. As soon as Sokka took away his blade, he slid down the wall and curled in on himself on the tunnel floor. He felt bile creep up his throat, threatening to make him hurl.

"What do you want to do?" Sokka whispered angrily to Aang once they had moved away from the trapped princess and sickly prince of the Fire Nation.

"We can't leave him here," Aang said, nervously glancing over his shoulder at his former enemy, a mass of shaking, overheating, firebender. He was turning frighteningly pale, Aang noted.

"After everything he's done? Chasing us down, attacking us, playing games? If we take him with us, he'll slow us down! If he doesn't die on the way out, Katara will surely kill him before you could even begin to explain yourself!" Aang sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I know, but I'm not leaving him here. Leaving him here is leaving him to surely die. All life is sacred Sokka, even his," Aang explained before Sokka could retort. "Has he lied to us yet?" He asked pointedly to Toph.

"No, he hasn't. Now, I don't know what beef exactly you've got with this guy, but you're right, Aang. If he was shot down by his own sister, then he doesn't have a great chance here if we don't get him to Sugar Queen."

"Then it's settled then. Toph, cover our rear and Sokka our front. I'll get Zuko," Aang said, glaring at both of them sternly, daring them to argue. Sokka sighed, storming over to the older boy.

"Get up," he snarled, upset over Aang's weird decision making skills. He cursed himself for leading them to Zuko in the first place. "We're leaving."

"Really?" Zuko croaked, cracking his eyes open to stare at Sokka, Toph, and the Avatar, dumbfounded.

"Yes, really. You're not doing so hot, if you haven't realized," Toph said. Zuko nodded, trying his best to sit up without getting sick all over himself or straining his burn.

"You're lucky, ZuZu! Father would have finished you off!" Azula shouted, trying again to burst out without her lightning. Toph had done a good job squeezing her into a corner.

Zuko did in fact count himself lucky that he had gotten found by the Avatar and his friends, or he surely would have endured a slow, painful death at the hands of the man he just almost killed. The others ignored her, though, as Aang moved beside Zuko and helped him stand.

"Are these yours?" Sokka asked, pointing to a set of blades and sheath a bit down the tunnel.

"Yes," Zuko said breathlessly, trying to adjust himself on Aang, who was considerably shorter than himself. Sokka collected them for Zuko and took the lead of their little pity party.

"I'll find you! I'll find you all!" Azula shrieked as they marched away as quickly as they could toward their exit.

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 **And there you go! I'm trying to show, not tell, more, and capture feelings. (The two biggest selling points for me.) If you have any questions that relate to writing, Avatar, and this story, feel free to comment and if we get winded I'll PM you or mention you in the Author's Note for the next chapter. Just depends if we talk spoilers or not.**

 **Don't to forget to follow and fav, and I'll probably follow/fav you back.**


	2. What the Avatar Drug Out of the Ground

**A/N: Guys, I'm beside myself over the fact that this story has gotten so many hits in only a week and a day. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU so much! (Especially to those who have followed, favorited, and reviewed already!)**

 **This chapter is longer, and if you haven't noticed yet, these two chapters (and this entire story) is/will be written in third person omniscient. It's just how I'm writing now, and I can't confirm future stories will be written in the same style. So if you're not the biggest fan of it, hang in there maybe, and if you love it, then Sam Smith "Stay with Me." If it's difficult to follow along in some aspects/in a certain part, let me know.  
**

 **To the reviewers: Thank you all for pointing out the things that I've missed/forgotten about. Like they say, two heads are better than one and so on and so forth. I've appreciated the feedback and critique, and I would love more as I keep going with this.**

 **With Toph not recognizing Zuko in the first chapter, as well as to why he was on 'death's door" with being burned, I hope I addressed your concerns correctly. I was planning on elaborating on those plot points with this second chapter, which I did, mainly concerned with really just set up in Ch 1. But, it's great to see/hear from such attentive Avatar fans.**

 **DISCLAIMER: Peace and love Bryke always. I do not own Avatar nor any of these characters. I am merely writing about them because I love them.**

 **Again, mild language and attempts of hitting the feels.**

 **Keeping in mind they're all in the heat of battle, here we go...**

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Chapter Two – What the Avatar Drug Out of the Ground

"How'd you get in?" Zuko asked Aang as he helped him shuffle along.

"Toph made us our own way in," he explained. "It's not _too_ far away..." He added as Zuko stumbled over his own two feet again, getting noticeably dizzier from standing up and walking.

"Come on. You can make it," Aang encouraged him, letting Zuko lean more on him if he wanted to. Zuko was touched. This was the kid that he had relentlessly, _stupidly_ , haunted for almost a solid year, and here he was, helping him hobble to safety when he could have easily left him behind. He felt compelled to say _something,_ at the very least, for the Avatar's compassion.

"Hey, listen. I'm, I'm sorry for ARGH!" He had stretched out his burn too far while trying to extend his left leg, mildly affected by his new sore spot. Zuko, not thinking, kneeled over, trying to snuff out the pain if he balled up, dragging Aang down with him.

"Sorry sorry!" Zuko murmured, trying to loosen his grip to prevent choking the airbender.

"Shh! Will you? We'll have soldiers on us in minutes if you keep shouting!" Sokka snapped at him, glaring at the two of them entangled. Toph snickered.

"Sorry about Sokka," Aang whispered to Zuko when they rightened themselves and Zuko was able to force himself to get up and continue on. "The invasion was his idea, and he's, well, feeling a bit too responsible and _edgy_ right now."

"And I'm not helping," Zuko grunted as he tried to figure out a walking method.

"I wasn't going to leave you."

"Again?" He was getting a bit tired of the Avatar saving his ass.

"Yes."

Sokka turned to glare at the two of them over his shoulder.

"Don't get too friendly, jerk," Sokka spat.

"Aren't you supposed to be the lookout?" Zuko grumbled. Sokka growled, turning back to peek around corners and scope out their path. Aang shut up after that, not wanting to provoke anybody anymore than he already had.

Zuko, meanwhile, tried his best to breathe in and out and to calm his racing heart. Flashes of the last time he had been burned ran through his mind uncontrollably, not helping him keep a level head.

Now, both his father and sister had showed their dislike of him directly. Physically. Anger coursed through his veins, mixing with the adrenaline in his system, making him feel even more faint than he already was. He tried his best to stay upright and to not lean too much on the Avatar. Zuko had to force himself continue to move onward towards safety, when all he wanted to do was collapse and be miserable. (That damn mantra of his.)

" _I'm glad I passed out after I was burned the first time,_ " Zuko thought as he swooned again. " _Because this is absolute hell…_ " He couldn't believe he was basically re-living his banishment. " _What? Is it every time I leave I have to be given a parting gift?_ "

He couldn't help but think, though, if this hurt worse than the first time. His sister's blue fire had burned away the top layer of his skin on contact and dug down deep fast, making her work of him quick, but not necessarily painless, while on the contrary, Father's seemed to have sizzled for a bit, slowly eating away at him. He remembered passing out from the sheer trauma of it all while his father was addressing the crowd at the Agni Kai. That first fight had been way more emotionally charged than his scuffle with his sister had been, making it ten times as worse. But, Azula's blue fire and how proud of himself he was for denouncing his loyality to Father, only for he to be immobilized and captured, made it almost as equally awful and humiliating.

"Uh, Zuko? Are you OK?" Aang's voice said, cutting through the fog in Zuko's head. Zuko had been unconsciously starting to stagger a bit, getting too lost in his own good for _absolutely nothing_ thoughts. He blinked a few times, snapping fully back into reality.

"Yeah...Yeah, I'm fine…" Zuko trailed, grimacing at the pain that shot up through the left side of his body whenever he tried to step with his left foot. He tried his hardest to focus on moving forward one step at a time, instead of how light-headed and Jello-limbed he was, how he wanted to just collapse and pass out like he did the first time, how his irrational side craved to give Azula and Father a taste of their own medicine…

" _Barely OK_ ," Toph thought as she moved behind them, monitoring the Fire Prince and on the lookout for any approaching opposition or obstacle. Zuko, according to her feet, was having a serious anxiety attack and arguably hyperventilating a bit, and she was surprised he hadn't just, you know, up and _lost it_ yet.

After they had found out Zuko was the one that had been shot down and decided to take him with them, Toph remembered who he was. This was Iroh's nephew, or "the angry jerk," according to Sokka, that had apparently chased Aang, Sokka, and Katara all over the world before she had joined up with them.

Toph remembered "meeting" him once, when they were all fighting Azula in that abandoned desert town deep in the Earth Kingdom. How he felt now compared to then, though, was starkly different. Toph couldn't tell if it was because he himself was in pain, but when Azula had struck his Uncle with lightning, he seemed pretty traumatized then too, but his baseline feel seemed now a lot more, _calmer_ , instead of raging all over the place, threatening to go off at any minute over something or other.

"Uh oh, guys. We have a problem," Toph said, pushing her way past Aang, Zuko, and Sokka, sensing trouble ahead. She rounded the corner just ahead of them and stopped at the edge of the lave lake that they had had enough trouble passing over without an injured hitchhiker.

"How are we supposed to get across that?" She asked.

"GEEZ!" Sokka exclaimed, looking like he was seriously considering ripping his hair out or attacking a stalagmite or something. "Aang! Can you cool a bridge across?"

"The lava will just fountain over," Zuko said, looking just as defeated as Sokka did. He knew they couldn't get across that easily with him now.

"Toph! Can you earthbend a bridge wide and high enough across?"

"If there's enough solid stone available, sure." She took her stance and made to raise a bridge out of the molten rock. Slowly, painfully, piece by piece a sufficient bridge took shape in front of them, eventually cool enough to walk on and tall enough to avoid being burned from the lava bubbling up.

It had taken all of Sokka's patience and effort not to yell at Toph to hurry up or to convince Aang to drop Prince Pouty and help, afraid that any second they spent as sitting turtle-ducks was another second a platoon of firebenders was given to find them.

They crossed quickly, thankfully with no one seeming to tail them, and not long after finally came to the hole in the ceiling where Aang, Sokka, and Toph had entered. Toph raised them up and out into the sun now shining brightly overhead and into their next pressing problem of escaping the Fire Nation.

Appa roared happily at seeing his favorite airbender and his companions come out of the ground alive. Momo chittered excitedly, soaring over to greet them. He landed on Aang's shoulder, but leaned over to sniff at the new addition in the form of Zuko.

"Hey Momo!" Aang exclaimed, smiling. "Appa! I'm glad that you two are OK!" Aang helped guide Zuko over to the giant, armor-clad beast, Zuko faintly noticing the bison's protection.

"Impressive…" Zuko wheezed, the mild temperature of the beginning of the summer causing him to begin to overheat even more.

"Thanks," Sokka said, climbing on board and not bothering to fully appreciate the complement. Toph bended herself, Aang, and Zuko onto Appa, Aang helping ease Zuko onto the back of Appa's saddle. He made to sit next to him.

"No, Aang. You drive, and head off Katara. I've got Zuko," Sokka said, sitting down next to the older boy, who was trying to find a comfortable position on the saddle. Aang nodded, and moved to sit on Appa's neck.

"Yip yip!" Aang called. The bison lurched, and was suddenly soaring. Zuko sighed in relief, now out of the immediate danger of his sister and father. He thought better of it, though. There was Katara, the rest of the invasion force, and foot soldiers, the predicament of his…

" _Uncle!_ " He suddenly thought. " _No, no no!_ " Zuko turned to look behind them. The capital city and the palace were a good couple hundred feet below them now, and in the distance, on the horizon, the second caldera that housed the jail.

He was supposed to have gone and bust his Uncle out of his prison cell! And all of his supplies and the war balloon…Zuko turned back around and slumped against the saddle.

"What's wrong? Do we have company?" Sokka asked him, turning to look behind them as they began to slowly descend.

"No…" Zuko grumbled. "My original plans…My Uncle…" So much guilt that had built up inside him over the past few weeks washed over him quickly, threatening to make him loose it, but he dared not cry in front of the Avatar again.

The bison was approaching ground quickly now, where the sounds of fighting and shouting and firebending were almost deafening. The palace guards were trying to push the invasion force out of the caldera itself and force them onto the pathway leading back down to the beach.

"What about your Uncle?" Sokka shouted.

"I was supposed to go and free him from prison! And all my supplies! My war balloon…"

"Well, we can drop you off and you can crawl your way through your original plan, if you want to!"

"Sokka! Enough!" Toph yelled at him. "Don't make me come over there!" She didn't feel it fair that he had to be ripped on by Sokka, when he had just been deep-fried by a member of his own family. Having family problems of her own, she understood partially Zuko's angst. She even went as far as to imagine herself in his shoes, but with the added pressures of being the prince of the nation that was bent on world domination and strength and power, and being a traitor to that type of society.

Toph didn't have the opportunity to get in between the two boys, though. Appa landed next to Katara, Hakoda, and some of the other members of the invasion force before Sokka could retort.

"Why are you back so early?" Katara asked, scanning their apprehensive faces, trying to read them. "What…" Katara's gave fell upon Zuko in the back.

"No," she breathed, switching from concerned to furious in an instant.

"Katara! I can explain!" Aang started, trying to block her off from Zuko as she climbed on board.

"Sugar Queen, let's not do anything rash here…" Toph said, moving to get in her way too.

"No! Get out of my way!" Katara yelled, barreling her way past Aang and Toph. She drew out and solidified the water in her pouch around her forearm to make an ice dagger.

"Katara, stop!" Sokka exclaimed, trying to rein her in. She shoved her brother aside, grabbed Zuko by the collar of his tunic, and placed the ice dagger to his neck all in one swift motion. She immediately drew blood. Zuko, slick with perspiration and getting more anxious by the minute, especially now with the presence of Katara, howled in pain, cringing from the sudden disruption of the sweet spot he had found to sit comfortably in.

"Oh shut up! It's just a tiny cut!" Katara exclaimed, exasperated, thinking he was reacting to her. She hadn't noticed, in her flight to grab for him, his greater injury. "But I can make it bigger, if you want!" She threatened him.

"Katara, stop!" Aang, Sokka, and Toph all shouted at once. She refused to move away from Zuko though, determined to keep her dagger in place and her glare trained on him. Katara wished suddenly that she was a telepathic and that Zuko was too so that he could hear all the vile things she was thinking about him, but she could settle for how it made her slightly satisfied to see him reacting in the way he was to her move on him.

Zuko shook from an unhealthy combination of fever, his burning side, anxiety, and the raw force and persona of Katara.

"Why are you here?" Katara demanded before she noticed the rattling sound of the shackles still attached around Zuko's wrists.

"Good," she snarled. "Sokka should have gagged and tired up your feet too, though."

"Katara, that was Azula," Aang started, attempting to peel her off and away from Zuko. "She attacked him, burning his side pretty badly. We need you to heal him."

"What?!" She exclaimed, bewildered at what she was hearing. She melted her ice dagger and let Zuko drop down onto the saddle. She turned to face Aang.

"We ran into him and Azula when we were leaving. I wasn't going to leave him behind," Aang explained. Katara valued Aang's reasonings as the Avatar and as her friend, but sometimes, sometimes they were just straight up crazy.

"And you were just going to forgive him, bring him along, endanger everyone, and expect us all to be OK with that?! After everything he's done to us? After Ba Sing Se?" She snapped at him, a bit flushed from everything that was currently transpiring.

Aang's scar on his back and foot prickled on cue.

"Katara," Aang started. "Stop. No, I'm not overly thrilled about, well, Zuko, but he needs healing Katara."

"Yeah. Sparky over here is going to have a heart attack soon or burst into flames…" Toph trailed. "Maybe even both…"

"And hey! It's three benders and a Water Tribe Warrior against one crippled firebender. I think he's smart enough not to cause any trouble on purpose," Sokka added.

Zuko could feel himself sigh inwardly. He knew, well, 'he' wasn't going to go over well as soon as the Avatar and his friends showed up. But, he would take this interrogation and questioning of loyalties any day over a fairly similar situation with his father and sister.

He saw Katara shooting him dirty looks.

"Fine. But we have our eyes on you," Katara said.

Zuko nodded in understanding, his side sending another jolt of pain throughout him and not helping with his overall condition and situation.

"So, you _will_ heal him?" Aang asked, searching Katara hopefully. She studied the airbender carefully, trying to figure out where he got this idea that she would just cave in to his every wish, and then turned to Zuko.

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 **And there's chapter two! I had a hell of a time trying to edit this down and out initially, and I just had to come back and revise again. Chapter three hopefully soon...  
**

 **So Zuko's tired of Aang saving his ass...well, there was the Blue Spirit episode where Aang and him escape Zhao, the North Pole, Ba Sing Se...**

 **Ahh! Cliffhanger! The Devil's struck again! Katara Katara Katara...I had her a bit more violent originally, and I watered her down a bit. (Haha, crappy pun.) I'll get into Katara's dual feelings over someone being hurt in the beginning of chapter three, I promise you.  
**


	3. Live or Let Die

**Really, I have no excuse. I was going to work on Chapter Three a week ago, but I ended up editing Chapter Two. Now, I'm satisfied with it. (For the time being.)**

 **Sorry for the delay, but I'm SO PROUD of myself for breaking my goal of updating regularly so soon. -That was sarcasm-**

 **Didn't help that I got tied up reading obsessively with some oldie but goodie fics on here. I still wish I had my hundred plus list of fanfics that I gathered up over a year or two... (Just for ATLA btw.)**

 **Thanks for being patient. I was surprised on the stats I got while this was pushed back to like, page eight or ten.**

 **Disclaimer: Still don't own Avatar: TLA.**

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Chapter Three: Live or Let Die

If Katara hadn't sensed how sickly Zuko was, then she wouldn't have wanted to bother with him.

" _I'll never turn my back on the people who need me!_ " But since _when_ did that apply to Zuko? She wanted to leave him frozen up in the North Pole. It amazed her how well they had worked with Zuko and his Uncle to fend off Azula in the Earth Kingdom town. And then, in Ba Sing Se, when she _wanted_ to help him, he stabbed her in the back! He helped ultimately kill Aang! Why should she help? She had offered her healing services to him on multiple different occasions and most of the time he violently rejected her!

"I'm getting our invasion force out of here first, then I'll worry about Princey over there," Katara said bitterly, making sure Zuko could hear her. He got the idea that she wanted him to suffer for just a while longer. And the bad thing was that he felt like he deserved it.

"Did you take out the Firelord, Aang?" Hakoda called up to him, turning his attention to his children and their friends. He was still leaning on Bato for support.

"No." Aang's face fell. "They knew we were coming, and we walked right into Azula instead. She stalled us. I couldn't get to the Firelord before the eclipse ended."

Zuko knew about the trap, and how likely the Avatar was to fall into it. Instead, he had faced the Firelord, denounced his loyalty to him, and almost got barbecued with lightning in the process.

The memory of all that raw energy coursing through his body sent an unneeded wave of adrenaline through him, and the really felt like he was going to get sick and pass out this time. And then he found out that the bastard had lied about Mother and how she was still alive somewhere…

He told himself that he was not allowed to breakdown again, but he hadn't felt such emotional intensity and physical pain combined in years, and it was overwhelming.

"Should I be worried about the extra in the back?" Hakoda asked him, eyeing Zuko's cringing form. "He doesn't look too hot…"

"We've got it all under control, Dad. We just need to get out of here," Katara said, jumping down.

There were calls of retreat down the mountainside right as Katara came over to join her father again. A wave of firebenders, fists ablaze, came screaming over the tip of the caldera, chasing a group of retreating resistance.

"Let's move!" Sokka called. "Toph! Help burry some Fire Nation scum, will you?" She nodded, leaping down. Aang joined her, leaving Sokka alone with Zuko. Sokka bounced from foot to foot, looking like he wanted to be down on the ground, leading on the front lines instead of babysitting.

"Go," Zuko said as loudly over the noise of fighting as he could. "I'm not going anywhere," he choked out, fighting back another wave of tears and nauseating pain. He slid down the side of the saddle and groaned, holding his burn. He was surprised to find the area wet with blood. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to coat his hand in a fine layer.

"Go Sokka!" He spat as loudly as he could manage. "I'm fine!" Sokka finally leaped down to the ground, mumbling something about stubborn royalty. Appa lurched and charged forward down the slope. The bison's roars were almost drowned out by the war cries of his people and the Avatar's invasion force.

Zuko re-steadied himself on his spot in the back, trying not to get motion sickness. He wasn't surprised that his mind and body were reacting in such a way, and why he seemed to be hyperventilating so badly. Domesticity in his family had never been a strong suit for any of them.

"Bombs!" Someone cried. "Find cover!"

 _Oh no_ , Zuko thought. _I forgot about the airships_ … He felt the sun disappear and the pebbles from the earth shelf rain down on him as a bomb opened up above him. The hailstorm continued for a few tense minutes, the only sound of fire falling from the sky and the shifting of the earth.

"They're heading to the beach…"

"Why aren't they turning around?"

"The submarines! They're going to bomb the subs! How are we all going to escape?"

Zuko started to fell sorry for them.

"We're not." It was Katara and Sokka's father who spoke this time.

 _Shit_ …He thought, sensing where this was going. Tears burnt the back of his eyelids from his steady discomfort and guilt.

"The adults will stay and surrender. You kids will escape on Appa together."

 _Oh great. I'll have more onlookers…Like this isn't awkward enough…_

"We aren't leaving you behind!"

"Katara. You have to go with Aang. He's our only hope of ending this carnage." Katara and Sokka begrudgingly agreed, and they loaded up after one final hug.

"We won't be separated long," Hakoda reassured his children.

Soon, Zuko felt many bodies pressed against each other on Appa's saddle and immediately he missed his privacy.

"Who's…Oh." Someone new said. Zuko growled, face flushing, as he forced himself to sit back up and face them all. Three more people, one of them in a wheelchair, mind you, took up a lot more space than just five of them had.

The new three didn't hide the fact that they were staring at him, and had an idea of who he was. But once they saw him shackled and a bit on the crispy side, they calmed down a bit, though still trying to put a little distance between themselves and the son of their enemy.

"I'm so, so sorry. I promise I will make it up to you," Zuko could hear Aang calling from Appa's head to the rest of the force gathered around that they had to leave behind.

Aang looked like he wanted to say more, but as some palace guards came rushing down the mountainside, though, Aang was forced to spur Appa on and up into the skies. Once they cleared the Fire Nation mainland and dodged their airships, Aang announced that they could hide out at the Western Air Temple for the time being.

 _That's great, that's great…Now Katara…_ Zuko moaned as he suddenly passed out and fell over, his body unwilling to wait any longer on help, especially now since they were clear of any immediate danger.

"Whoa, there!" Toph exclaimed, Zuko almost landing on her. "Hey, Katara? A little assistance back here?"

Katara, a jumbled pile of contradicting emotions and thoughts currently, wished that they didn't have to worry about Zuko on top of everything else right now.

She made her way over, though, to examine him. Sweat poured off him in buckets and he was unusually pale for a firebender. Blood, she saw, coated his wounded side and hands.

Katara sighed. _Drama Queen. It's just a burn. Firebenders get a lot of those don't they, playing with fire?_ She drew some water out of one of her pouches and instead of bending it around her hands and ordering someone to help him up, she just threw it on Zuko, dousing him in an instant. That got him up and going again real quick, and he came back up, coughing and sputtering a bit.

"What, the _hell_?" He choked, grimacing at how coughing agitated his burn.

"Don't 'what the hell' me, Zuko. If I had found you instead of Aang I would have let Azula keep you!" Katara spat.

"Well, I'm lucky then aren't I?!" Zuko exclaimed, losing his patience and letting his anger grow.

" _VERY_ ," she seethed. "That we didn't offer you up back up as a sacrifice!"

"Both of you stop!" Aang yelled, picking his way towards them.

"I wanted to save you, Zuko. I had a choice. I could have just left you behind. Don't make me regret it."

Zuko growled, looking away from them bashfully. He could feel his ears grow hot. He knew he knew better to get angry like that with people he was already on thin ice with, but he didn't know how much longer he was willing to hold out as things currently were.

"Katara. I want you to heal him. He deserves that much."

"What?! So he can just attack us? Are you crazy?"

"Yes! Yes I am! I'm crazy for bringing him along, I'm crazy for putting everyone in danger, I'm crazy for thinking the invasion would work, and that I was ready!" Aang exclaimed, now letting his emotions get the best of him.

"Aang, I didn't mean…" Katara started.

"I know you didn't. But please Katara. For me?" Aang and Katara held each other in a deadlock, staring one another down to see who would cave first. Katara eventually gave in, not wanting to unsettle Aang more than he already was. Growling, she took out her remaining water and stalked over to Zuko. Sokka unsheathed his sword and laid it, gently, against Zuko's neck again as Katara's bending water started to glow. She pressed firmly to his side, and Zuko grimaced at how much it stung.

But, the discomfort faded as the burn cooled and started to heal. Zuko melting, not literally of course, at Katara's touch. The well-placed healing water took the edge off of his nerves and anxiety, and made his eyelids droopy. He had almost forgotten what it felt like to not be burning up from the insides, it seemed like, as he finally succumbed to the rest his mind, body, and soul needed.

Katara had to force herself to keep her emotions in check and not show how surprised she was at the amount of tension that had gathered in the area of Zuko's burn. It reminded her of how Aang's lightning scar had felt the same way when she tried to heal it once Aang was conscious and responsive again, but Zuko's was, well, more intense. She almost shied away after the epicenter was mainly patched up, afraid that she was going to be too overwhelmed by the angst and raw emotion concentrated in that one relatively small area if she continued on.

Trying to keep her composure, and surprised on how quickly she turned sympathetic towards him against her will, she dared to look up at him. Her brother still had his meteor sword against his neck.

"Sokka, he's asleep. He isn't going to do anything while he's exhausted like this."

"How do you know? You've slept-bent before," Sokka retorted.

"Yeah, but do you think when he's got a gaping hole in his side and after the commotion of this morning he'll be doing any sleep bending? Did you see how fast he passed out?" Sokka sighed, taking his sword away and sheathing it.

Katara studied Zuko. His chest rose and fell to the rhythm of his breathing, which was now fairly normal. He looked ragged and shaky, as if someone was to touch him he'd either spook and go up in flames or crumble in the wind. He looked much older than any of the war-torn kids flying away from the Fire Nation, especially with these scars of his. (This side burn was deep but thankfully fresh, allowing Katara the opportunity to reduce scaring. Keyword _reduce_.)

"So, what happened again?" Katara asked Sokka, who was sitting on the other side of Zuko.

"Well, all started out fine. Toph made us our own way inside the caldera, but we almost got melted alive with the amount of lava down there, though. We had to hop on the back of Aang's glider to make it across this giant lava lake and I swear I thought that was going to be the end of us," Sokka started. "Then, finally, we…"

"No, Sokka. With Zuko. What happened to him."

"Oh. Well, we were high-tailing it out of the labyrinth since the eclipse was over and our opportunity was gone and we were afraid to meet some firebenders or something. Azula had taken off in the opposite direction we went in, but we didn't get far until we had heard someone scream. Of course, being as paranoid as I was, I had to go check it out. What we found was Prince Pouty smoking and hobbling along, being dragged basically by Azula."

Almost as if he had heard his sister's name, Zuko twitched in his sleep, looking utterly exhausted as he sighed and leaned back, trying to subconsciously get comfortable on Appa's saddle.

The anxiety and the fear and the hurt wrought up in him made sense, then. It was evident on how the Fire Nation siblings got along, but to be hurt by your own family…She couldn't imagine Sokka and her hurting each other deliberately. _Physically_ , like Azula did to her brother. Like someone else had done to him, according to the old scar on Zuko's face.

With a deep breath, Katara dove back into her job though. Most of it was healed, or close to closing up, when she had to stop. She didn't want to send his body into even more shock, and plus: Katara needed a 'thank you' from him at the very least.

* * *

 **Let me know if you have any questions, and make sure to comment on the story!**


	4. Welcome, to the Western Air Temple

**A/N:**

 **So, I had a comment a while back, (from I think a guest), that said that he or she thought that I meant "hunted" in the second chapter (while Zuko was being dramatic) when I said "haunted." Nope. I meant "haunted." Essentially, Zuko did "haunt" Team Avatar around the world, having them constantly watch their backs. (Imagine if you had a presence of some sort that constantly followed you around.)**

 **In this chapter, actually in the first paragraph, I played on words again. It's not an error, but intentional.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own A:TLA.**

* * *

Chapter Four: Welcome, to the Western Air Temple

Aang grabbed Katara by the arm as she passed him, stalking back to her spot at the front behind where Aang sat at the head.

"Thank you," he said to her as sincerely as he could muster at the moment, still mildly disappointed at how his hospitality towards Zuko wasn't being showed by anyone else. Katara could only make herself grumble a barely audible "your welcome," angry with herself for falling a victim to Zuko's 'feelings' again She vowed _not_ to be as gullible as she was back in Ba Sing Se with him. Fool her once, shame on her. Fool her twice, _shame on him._

The rest of the trip was lead in relatively uneasy silence. Haru, Teo, and the Duke dared to whisper among themselves while Toph and Sokka muttered back and forth occasionally, all passengers on board afraid to wake Princess and make their current situation even more awkward. Katara sat mute, refusing to take her eyes off the sleeping figure of Zuko, and tried not to think about his issues and how she didn't want them to become hers. Aang kept to himself as well, focused almost obsessively on steering Appa toward their new hideout and trying not to think about the invasion, still terribly distraught and disappointed for failing everybody yet _again_. He kept telling himself that a clear mind was essential to deal with the now and that nothing ever good came out of dwelling on the past, hoping that he could brainwash himself to move on and start a plan B.

It was a much quicker journey to land than anyone thought it was going to be, and soon they touched down quite far away from the Fire Nation.

"Uh, Aang? Is this is the Western Air Temple?" Teo said, voicing everyone's question about Aang's directional skills. The landscape rolled along with tall, grassy hills as far as the eye could see, no buildings or signs of past inhabitations visible to anyone on Appa.

"The air temple is a few kilometers ahead, but Appa can't fly anymore. He's tired," Aang explained, dismounting. Appa was now noticeably panting, with the wind no longer deafening his rider's ears. "We'll have to walk the rest of the way."

Listening to Aang, the rest of the fleeing party all dismounted.

"What about Zuko?" Toph asked.

"Leave him. He can't walk anyways," Katara said, starting to continue forward. _Plus, the more I don't have to look at him, the better,_ she thought.

"A few kilometers ahead" was an understatement. If Aang had been good at estimating distance, he wouldn't have gotten everyone else excited at the prospect of their trek to the Western Air Temple being almost complete. Instead, they all walked for a good hour, almost two, before remotely coming close to their destination.

"This is embarrassing," Katara said, right as she finally able to stop obsessing over the thought of a certain prince of fire.

"What? Having to walk all the way to the Western Air Temple or getting thoroughly spanked by the Fire Nation?" Sokka asked.

"Both."

"Well, a day of back and forth, armor, and eight people to fly cross-country takes a toll on a skybison," Aang said, rubbing Appa affectionately on the nose.

"Hurry. Someone knock me out like Sparky up there. My feet are tired," Toph added.

"Not funny, Toph," Katara seethed.

"I like 'Sparky' as a nickname, though," Sokka said.

"Let's not get attached you two," Katara snapped at them. Not wanting to piss Katara off more than she already was, they kept quiet.

On Appa's saddle, Zuko twitched in nightmare. The dream was fitting for the day. In his mind, he was thirteen years old again, swimming in sheets and suffocating in his own sweat. Younger Zuko woke up with a blood-curling scream and shivering, a bandage wrapped tightly around the left side of his face. His head pounded, heart raced, and body shook, despite the sweat bath.

"Zuko!" He had heard Uncle call from the hallway. Soon, he was right beside him, trying to draw Zuko from the trance he was in.

"Nephew, how are you feeling? Price Zuko, answer me!" His uncle demanded, tears of his own welling in his eyes.

"I'm no prince anymore," Zuko remembered himself saying, hot tears streaming down his one un-bandaged eye.

"No, no! Don't think like that!" Uncle Iroh exclaimed, moving to get a better view of his nephew. Zuko was forced to look at his uncle in the eye. They both broke.

"I'm so, so sorry Uncle! I should have kept my mouth shut! I should have listened to you!" Zuko sobbed, embracing his Uncle Iroh.

"And I should have never let you in to the war meeting. It's my fault. All my fault!"

"No. Don't blame yourself. It's, it's on me," Zuko had whispered to his uncle, clutching onto him for dear life. Iroh sobbed harder, amazed at this kid's intensity and brutal honesty.

"How bad is it?" 'It' didn't need to be defined.

"The healers say that they've done the best they can, and that it's all up to you now."

Zuko could feel the thick, gooey cream underneath the bandage, and pulled away from Uncle to examine the rest of him. Nothing else seemed burned, but he smelt like fire and felt a bit clammy. His phoenix tail was still in, but he could feel a lot of hair burnt away on the left side of his head. He found it a bit difficult to keep one eye open and the other shut underneath the bandage.

"Prince Zuko, please. Take it easy. Quell your curiosity, I beg of you," Uncle pleaded. He did what he was told, and instead played with the edge of the blanket, suddenly concerned what had happened after he had passed out.

"I dare not tell you, right after you have just woken up…"

"Please Uncle…" Zuko had pleaded and pleaded with his Uncle, dreading what was to come from his mouth. But he needed to know. He needed to know what he was up against. Eventually, Iroh did give in and, taking Zuko's hands in his own, told him what had transpired.

"Your father has banished you, and will only allow you to return with the Avatar."

In real time, older Zuko twitched and muttered something incomprehensible, still lying on Appa's saddle as he trekked towards the air temple with everybody else.

"No…" Young Zuko choked out, fresh tears stinging his eye. He couldn't hold them back. "Uncle…" He had moaned into his shoulder as Iroh wrapped him up tight. In a matter of hours, Zuko's world had fallen apart for good this time. He was being kicked out of everything he had ever known, and had ever loved.

Zuko's dream suddenly fast-forwarded to the next day, when he was surrounded by healers and his uncle, trying to suppress tears. Someone was unwrapping the bandage around his head, and another pulling off the oversized eye patch. He felt exposed, now that his mark of shame was visible for everyone to see. Before a healer could replace and reset new bandages around his eye, he demanded a mirror.

"Prince Zuko, are you sure…" His uncle had started.

"Yes! I am!" He remembered yelling, threatening to start bawling again. Someone found a small hand-held mirror and gave it to him. He held it out in front of him to see, but not before taking a deep, shaky breath in, and letting it out.

The sight of the horribly marred swath of skin covering almost the whole left side of his face made him recoil. His breath was taken away instantaneously.

Three and a half years later, Zuko woke up with a start. His wrists hurt from him twitching against his shackles, and he could feel more tears coming to his eyes from the realization of the relevancy that dream had on the events of today. Embarrassed, he cursed himself for all this, this _emotion_ and _sobbing_ that had to stop. The little scrap of pride and self-worth he had left for today demanded it.

It took Zuko a second to remember where he was and why he was a bit damp and handcuffed, and another to gather his wits about him and truly calm down. Over the years, he had learned how to take his nightmares in silence, so he was revealed when the Avatar's group below him didn't seem to realize he was up.

Lastly, he registered the light, throbbing of his side. Comparatively, it barely hurt anymore, but there was still room for improvement. It was tender and raw, and due to past experiences with such injuries, he knew his leg and hip was going to be stiff for a bit. But, most importantly, Katara had almost patched him up completely. The roughly circle-shaped burn was now only a bit bigger than his first, and thankfully it would be a lot less visible. With Katara's healing, he imagined that it would be very faint by the time it was healed to its full capacity.

"Hey!" We're here!" He heard Toph call from the ground. Zuko leaned over the top of Appa's saddle, glancing down at his travel party. They were all standing at the edge of the giant canyon in front of them.

"Umm, Toph? I think you need to get your feet checked," Katara said, looking around to see if she was in fact missing something.

"No. Toph is right. We _are_ here," Zuko heard Aang say as he stepped up to the edge of the gorge. "We've made it."

Zuko, remembering the Western Air Temple from a previous visit here a few years ago, knew that in fact they were at their destination, and that everyone but the airbender of course was in for a treat.

"Wow, Aang! It's amazing…" Toph trailed, awestruck. "Really stunning, if I do say so myself. How'd they manage to make everything…"

"Shh Toph! Don't ruin the surprise!" Aang exclaimed, climbing back on Appa. "Everyone get on!"

Zuko didn't bother to pretend to be asleep as everyone climbed back on board.

"Good afternoon, Sparky. How was your nap?" Sokka asked him, grinning mischievously. Katara and Toph snickered, not bothering to hide their joy in seeing the heat rise to his checks.

"Fine, thanks. How'd your stroll go?" Zuko forced out. Sokka sighed, sitting down next to him.

"These boots weren't made for hiking."

"Everyone holding on?" Aang called to them in the back.

"Yes!" Katara called, trying to ignore Zuko.

"Yip yip, Appa!"

Appa lurched forward off the edge of the cliff, and glided down into the canyon. There were many 'ooos' and 'ahhhs' as everyone finally feasted their eyes on the Western Air Temple. To Zuko, the temple was pretty magnificent in its own right, functionality and design wise. With everything upside down, though, it made him feel like he was going to have a serious issue with orientation while he stayed here. Well, if he was allowed to stay there with the Avatar and his group.

"I know the perfect place where we can camp out!" Aang hollered to them, steering Appa toward the temple buildings. Aang was trying to be excited, that much was evident, by the way he was insanely thrilled about archaic and hollowed out buildings that were the scene of a mass genocide.

Zuko, completely out of the blue, had a flash of him as a kid after things really started to go to hell, about how his younger self had made this desperate attempt to find things that even remotely made him happy or brought him some solace. It unnerved him, that flash, showing him how much things had changed. He was scarred, traumatized, tired, and worn at only 17. At Aang's age, well, how old _was_ the airbender? He had spent a century in ice, preserving himself, but he looked easily 13. _13._ At 13… Zuko didn't want to remember again.

But another realization hit him as Zuko reviewed what had just occurred to him, and it made him a bit dizzy. Aang and him, he and Aang… He remembered what Uncle Iroh had told him only a short time ago.

 _"Your mother's grandfather was Avatar Roku. I'm sorry, nephew, but good and evil, light and darkness, are destined to fight and wrestle for control inside you."_

Zuko sighed, now officially and utterly done with his thought processes for the moment, but as Appa landed on the courtyard he suspected was going to be camp, he forced himself to stay focused and proactive. Stage two had come.

He tried to quickly run through the apology speech he had partially come up with before the Day of Black Sun to give to the world's last hope. It was a pathetic, groveling speech that he felt entitled to spew, no matter how painful.

"Oh, you guys! I can't wait to show you the all day echo chamber! And the _giant_ Pai Sho table! There are some good spots for earthbending practice here too, Toph, Haru," Aang started, eagerly jumping off and gesturing to their new hideout. Zuko suspected that one could get lost for days in here.

"We would sometimes come to visit, wouldn't we Appa?" Aang asked his bison.

"Umm, Aang? Shouldn't we talk? Sokka asked, eyeing Zuko rather sheepishly as everyone else moved from atop Appa. Katara sighed.

"Haru, Teo, The Duke? Will you give the rest of us a minute?" She asked more matter-of-factly than questioningly.

"Sure, Katara. I'm really interested in that echo chamber," Haru said, gesturing to the Duke and Teo.

"Yeah! A Pai Sho table? I haven't played in ages!" Teo exclaimed, following Haru away.

"Wait up you guys!" The Duke yelled, tearing after them. Once they had disappeared, Katara, Sokka, Aang, and Toph all waited for someone to break the silence.

"How are you holding up?" Aang asked, finally. It took Zuko a second to realize that the airbender was addressing him, for he had been too distracted by thinking up his plan of action.

"Oh. Yeah. I, I feel better, thanks," he answered, blushing a bit from being the center of attention.

Katara coughed rather obnoxiously from beside Aang, glaring up at Zuko sill sitting on Appa. Zuko sighed, anger flickering through him. He quickly directed his anger towards himself and not Katara, though, realizing that he was the only one to blame for her distrust in him.

"Thank you Katara." He added her name for emphasis. She still eyed him unwarily, and it unnerved him a bit.

"Toph, will you please help _Prince Zuko_ off of Appa?" Katara asked, keeping her focus trained on him. Toph huffed, yet obliged, and sent up a rock pillar to help escort him down. Sokka helped Zuko up and over to Toph's elevator, immediately weirded out that he was in such close contact with his enemy.

"Zuko, you can have your own room and bed and such inside the temple so you can rest up," Aang said when he and Sokka reached solid ground. Zuko was touched at the Avatar's hospitality, and was unsure how to react besides nodding awkwardly at him.

"Toph, would you please let Zuko go?" Aang said, daring Zuko to do anything hasty with the amount of trust he was bestowing upon him.

"What?!" Katara and Sokka both exclaimed, Sokka in turn almost dropping Zuko.

"Why the _hell_ would you do that?"

"You possibly can't trust him _that_ much, Aang! After the last year you're willing to bend to puppy-dog eyes over here?"

"Not over my dead body!"

Aang sighed, suddenly looking considerably more hampered compared to a few minutes ago. While Katara and Sokka told him and Zuko off, though, the two of them calmly met each other's gaze.

Zuko saw himself: tired, weighed down, ashamed, and confused.

Aang saw himself: worn, responsible, old, and troubled.

"Sokka! Katara!" Hesitantly, they both stopped yelling at Aang's request. "I want to hear what Zuko has to say for himself. Toph, release him," Aang said, eyeing everyone in turn. Katara held her tongue, but Sokka wanted one last word.

"Aang, this isn't a good idea. I know you're the Avatar and all, and you last name is 'forgive and forget,' but…"

"Then you understand. I want to forgive, and forget." Sokka had to pause and stare bewildered at his best friend's resolve, but he sighed, giving in.

"Zuko, you have one shot buddy. Make it count," Sokka said sternly, clearly fairly irritated about how this was going.

Zuko knew they could all see him nervously shake a bit as he held out his hands. Toph, grabbing the band of each shackle, pinched apart his restraints with metal bending.

"Impressive…Metal bending?" Zuko asked, trying not to sound like a suck-up.

"Yeah!" Toph exclaimed, taking the handcuffs off Zuko entirely. "I invented it myself."

"Alright Toph. Zuko, spit it out already, would you? I'm not getting any younger here, nor is the Fire Nation getting any less tyrannical," snapped Sokka.

Zuko purposefully ignored that last comment and instead un-tangled himself from the volatile Water Tribe boy and rubbed his wrists. The cuffs gone, he could clearly see them starting to bruise.

Zuko thought of what to say first that wouldn't get this conversation off to a sour start more than it already had.

He could feel his heart begin to pound and his mind reel. _What to say, what to say?!_ _Come on, Zuko. You've practiced this…Not enough, but you've at least thought ahead this time! Just start talking! You'll eventually get to the point!_

He had planned on time to work out the kinks of his apology speech and how to skirt around all his past infractions against the Avatar and his friends, since all the ways he had thought about initially addressing them started out with throwing all the reasons why they should continue to hate him in their faces. It was crucial that he didn't get started off on more of a wrong foot, though, for knew he needed to show them that he was taking full responsibility for his actions and hated himself for them now.

 _Now just say that, but out loud this time!_

Zuko tried to make his mouth work, but all he was able to do was make helpless, pathetic, incoherent noises. Katara scoffed at him under her breath, and Sokka rolled his eyes.

"Here, lets start with this: Why did your sister attack you?" Aang said, trying to prompt him along since he was painfully struggling. "I know you started to explain that at least."

Zuko sent him a silent 'Thank You.'

"I know that you know that I went back home…"

"Yeah! After you betrayed us!" Katara snapped, not going to let him get two copper pieces in if she could help it. Zuko acted as if he hadn't heard her.

"…and, well, I had thought at the time that if I earned back my father's love and appreciation I'd be happy; I'd feel as if I was back where I belonged. But, that month home didn't turn out anything like I'd imagined. I was still so on edge; I felt as if something was just out of my reach…"

"Was it Aang?" Katara butted in again. Aang glared at her while Zuko continued.

"…and I finally figured out what it was, only a few days before the Day of Black Sun. Well, my Uncle was the one that finally gave me some context to what I was feeling…"

 _Oh great here we go again, talking about feelings. Give it a rest, Zuko. You know I'm not going to buy any of your bullshit, especially if you start talking about you mother…_ Katara sneered at him, though only in her mind.

"…It turns out that I didn't know my family as well as I thought I did. My grandfather, Firelord Sozin, is my grandfather on my father's side. But on my mother's side…"

 _Spirits! Why are you out to get me today?_

"…my grandfather is Avatar Roku," Zuko finished, looking pointedly at Aang. Katara could only muster a deeper scowl, for Sokka took her words right out of her mouth.

"Ha! That's a total lie, saying that your grandfather is Aang in a past life!" Sokka jeered. "Can you believe this guy?"

"It's true. Avatar, ask him when time permits, if you so need to," Zuko added. Aang did nod, though still a little shocked out of his mind, and gestured for Zuko to continue.

"It all made sense after I found that out, especially since I had always gotten along better with my mother than father anyways. I started doing some thinking afterwards, and I ended up coming to the conclusion that, well, my destiny didn't lie in the Fire Nation and with my father and sister quite yet. Instead of spreading fear and hatred in the world like my father's predecessors did, I wanted to reinstall the peace, like my mother's predecessor had done. My travels showed me that the Fire Nation was only really doing just that: causing chaos and ripping lives apart," he quickly glanced over at Katara as he said this, hoping that she could voluntarily agree to admitting that last part to him.

"So I decided to leave. I, during the Eclipse, officially denounced my loyalty to the Firelord. That's why I was down there in the tunnels. Then, well, you know the rest."

"But, I believe that I can help aid your cause. Your plan of taking out the Firelord and ending the war during the Eclipse didn't work; my sister came back from Ba Sing Se with the knowledge that you were going to attack us today. But, as far as I know, the Avatar has only mastered air, water, and earth. Those three elements alone won't be enough to finish my father off. Aang, in order to stand a chance of winning this war, needs to learn firebending. I'd be honored to teach it to him."


End file.
